A cheap and deadly substance known on the streets as “suck-and-die” is spreading like wildfire among young Nigerians.
Sold for as little as ₦250 to ₦300, this chemical, methylene chloride, is being inhaled by teenagers and young adults in a desperate search for escape, euphoria, or simply a numbing calm.
Once used industrially as a paint stripper and solvent, it is now being misused as a recreational drug.
Its side effects? Hallucinations, unconsciousness, brain damage, and in many cases, death.
Jacob, a 19-year-old from Alapere, Lagos, first tried suck-and-die before his birthday.
Academic struggles and emotional neglect at home made him vulnerable. He didn’t just stumble into drug use, he walked into it, guided by despair and the absence of support.
“It’s like a slow wind blowing inside your head,” he said.
“You just feel alright. Your body just begins to see better, clearer.”
Jacob began inhaling the substance in secret hangouts called “bunkers” with friends. Using a method called bagging, he would trap the chemical fumes in a plastic bag and inhale deeply.
It was cheap, accessible, and invisible to unsuspecting adults, even in their presence.
Street names like Suck & Die, Dead Man, Gelato, and Rubber Solution are now part of the growing catalogue of non-conventional narcotics used by youth.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has warned about these dangerous trends, linking them to the rise in youth addiction and psychiatric disorders.
In November 2024, NDLEA Director of Media & Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, sounded the alarm after confiscating large quantities of these substances in Lagos and Kano.
“Parents, shine your eyes,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “These drugs are destroying lives in silence.”
Scientifically known as methylene chloride (CH₂Cl₂), this clear, sweet-smelling liquid is highly toxic, even in small doses.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) warns that inhalation of its vapours can cause Dizziness and confusion, hallucinations, slowed breathing, loss of consciousness, cardiac arrest, brain damage from oxygen deprivation and death.
Methylene chloride also converts into carbon monoxide in the body, reducing blood oxygen levels and placing extreme stress on the brain and heart. Children and teens are particularly vulnerable.
Junior, now in his early 20s, tried suck-and-die in 2021. He describes his experience as terrifying:
“The world just froze, and everything started spinning. I vomited all night. My uncle was high. I thought I was going to die.”
No one warned him of the danger. He believed it was just “another herb” like marijuana.
In Bauchi, police arrested Kabiru Adamu, who admitted to distributing bottles of suck-and-die for ₦300 each.
In Kano, NDLEA arrested 49 suspects and raided notorious hotspots in August 2025, seizing methylene chloride and other illicit drugs.
In Adamawa, customs officials intercepted industrial drums of the chemical during anti-smuggling operations, valued at over ₦33.9 million.
Health experts say the drug’s effect on the brain is similar to other hard narcotics. It triggers dopamine release, the “feel-good” hormone, creating a cycle of craving and compulsive use.
“You need more each time to get the same high,” explained Dr. Chimeremeze Odu, a clinical psychologist.
“And when the high fades, withdrawal kicks in hard.”
The danger is amplified because users often don’t even know what they’re inhaling—or how much.
Public health researchers say suck-and-die represents a shift in Nigeria’s drug crisis, from traditional narcotics like cannabis and codeine to non-conventional chemical abuse.
According to a 2016 neuropsychiatric study in Maiduguri, most substance abusers were in their twenties, with a sharp drop after age 30.
The most vulnerable groups were students, artisans, and the unemployed.
Doctors say methylene chloride poisoning affects nearly every system in the body:
Metabolic: Converts into carbon monoxide
Cardiovascular: Triggers irregular heartbeat, heart attacks
Respiratory: Causes lung inflammation, breathing difficulties
Neurological: Memory loss, seizures, coma
Dermal/Ocular: Burns, blisters, vision problems
Long-term: Permanent brain injury, incontinence, even death
Experts argue that addiction isn’t just a legal issue, it’s a mental health crisis.
“We need structured rehab, early intervention in schools, and long-term community support,” said psychologist Odu. “Punishment alone won’t solve this.”
Dr. Olabiyi Olaniran, a Harvard-trained toxicologist, warned that survivors of methylene chloride exposure often suffer lifelong complications, including mental deterioration and loss of motor function.
